Philosophy
Machiavelli's The Prince was a watershed work. Before it, discussions of governance were considered to be governed by the rules of ethics, that the way one should govern was completely determined by how one should act. Machiavelli made it a pragmatic matter. Here is how to do it successfully without moral consideration. Surely, it is wrong to think that governance is independent of ethics; one can govern immorally and be blameworthy for it, but is ethics sufficient to determine how to govern? Is governance rightly a subfield of ethics?
- Sins Of Old Age: Is Ethics Age-dependent?
On the way in this morning, the classical station played Rossini's "Sins of Old Age," a title that begs for consideration. There is surely a time before adulthood when one is not fully able to be a complete moral agent because of lack of knowledge,...
- M.b.a.'s And The Meltdown
A letter to Marketplace made an interesting point. This economic meltdown was the result of the actions of businesspeople at a time when more people have M.B.A.'s than at any time in history. The letter-writer was bemoaning the fact that the graduate...
- Consequentialism, Deontology, And The Aretaic Turn
One debate that has dominated the attention of ethicists in the history of the modern era has been between consequentialism (the idea that the consequences of a particular action form the basis for any valid moral judgement about that action) and deontology...
- Quentin Skinner On Machiavelli
When you think of the great philosophers from antiquity, especially those who were interested in social and political questions, we have a long tradition of understanding political governance within a strict ethical framework. That line of thinking suffered...
- Barry Schwarts On Aristotle And Practical Wisdom
In his famous Nicomachean Ethics, the ancient philosopher Aristotle argued that ethics is not an exact science, and that looking for mathematical precision in such a discipline is bound both to fail and to distort ethics itself. Instead of thinking of...
Philosophy
Is Governance a Subfield of Ethics?
Machiavelli's The Prince was a watershed work. Before it, discussions of governance were considered to be governed by the rules of ethics, that the way one should govern was completely determined by how one should act. Machiavelli made it a pragmatic matter. Here is how to do it successfully without moral consideration. Surely, it is wrong to think that governance is independent of ethics; one can govern immorally and be blameworthy for it, but is ethics sufficient to determine how to govern? Is governance rightly a subfield of ethics?
- Sins Of Old Age: Is Ethics Age-dependent?
On the way in this morning, the classical station played Rossini's "Sins of Old Age," a title that begs for consideration. There is surely a time before adulthood when one is not fully able to be a complete moral agent because of lack of knowledge,...
- M.b.a.'s And The Meltdown
A letter to Marketplace made an interesting point. This economic meltdown was the result of the actions of businesspeople at a time when more people have M.B.A.'s than at any time in history. The letter-writer was bemoaning the fact that the graduate...
- Consequentialism, Deontology, And The Aretaic Turn
One debate that has dominated the attention of ethicists in the history of the modern era has been between consequentialism (the idea that the consequences of a particular action form the basis for any valid moral judgement about that action) and deontology...
- Quentin Skinner On Machiavelli
When you think of the great philosophers from antiquity, especially those who were interested in social and political questions, we have a long tradition of understanding political governance within a strict ethical framework. That line of thinking suffered...
- Barry Schwarts On Aristotle And Practical Wisdom
In his famous Nicomachean Ethics, the ancient philosopher Aristotle argued that ethics is not an exact science, and that looking for mathematical precision in such a discipline is bound both to fail and to distort ethics itself. Instead of thinking of...